Volume 4 Chapter 43

Volume 4 + Chapter 43: A Change In Perception

Faced with the Nine-tailed Fox Emperor’s questioning, Xia Yi gave her answer.

“Haha… hahahaha!”

Hearing this, the Fox Emperor paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

Xia Yi’s reply matched everyone’s impression of the Silver Dragon Queen so perfectly that it was no exaggeration to say mother and daughter were carved from the same mold—both in appearance and personality.

“Such identical arrogance… but this arrogance—”

The Fox Emperor laughed only briefly before withdrawing the smile.

The ferocity he had hidden beneath his gentleness finally surfaced.

“Requires real strength. Do you have that strength, Silver Dragon Princess?”

His aura surged violently. The nine tails behind him rose upright, and his eyes sharpened. A suffocating pressure crashed down.

This was… the oppressive might of a Highborn King!

Xia Yi, currently at Fourth Rank, sensed clearly that the Fox Emperor’s realm had already surpassed Fifth Rank.

She could not determine the exact level, but it was at least two major realms above her own.

A single major realm gap was already difficult to bridge—let alone more than one.

When the disparity became overwhelming, a true powerhouse did not even need to lift a hand, aura alone could shatter the will of the weak, or even damage their soul.

The Fox Emperor was not playing around—he was genuinely exerting pressure on Xia Yi.

From the perspective of the others, Xia Yi’s bold words were nothing but arrogance born from the Silver Dragon Queen’s pampering and her own princess identity.

None of them truly acknowledged her. They merely saw her as an ignorant second-generation upstart who lacked self-awareness.

The Silver Dragon Queen wasn’t even here—no one was backing her. What gave her the courage to be this arrogant?

This was the honest thought of every Highborn present.

And compared to others who only thought it, the Fox Emperor was taking action—teaching this reckless child a lesson.

What would happen next?

Some Highborns were already secretly laughing, eager to see the Silver Dragon Princess make a fool of herself.

This pampered princess of the Dragon Palace—under this kind of pressure, she would surely panic, maybe even reveal her true dragon form and grovel for mercy.

Even the most outstanding young heirs seldom held firm under the direct pressure of a Highborn King.

Since she dared to speak arrogantly in the name of the Dragon Royal Family, then today she would embarrass that very Royal Family here!

“Hmm? No words?” The Fox Emperor smirked disdainfully. “Out here, people won’t play house with you like they do in the Dragon Palace.”

“……”

The little fox beside him looked conflicted, wondering whether she should plead for her fated rival.

Just when everyone believed Xia Yi was about to break down, she lifted her head—meeting the Fox Emperor’s gaze directly.

Heart of Still Waters—Mirror-Clear Serenity.

She quietly entered a flawless mental state, stabilizing her spirit.

While enduring the Fox Emperor’s pressure, she activated her Silver Dragon royal bloodline to resist him.

“Your Majesty Fox Emperor, you’re right—arrogance requires strength. And as it happens… I do have that strength.”

A faint light shimmered in Xia Yi’s silver eyes.

Everyone was inwardly astonished.

They could clearly sense Xia Yi had reached Fourth Rank.

Some of them had attended the previous Highborn Gathering—back then, the Silver Dragon Princess had only been Third Rank. Advancing to Fourth Rank in such a short time was absurdly fast!

It defied common logic.

Even more incomprehensible—despite being only Fourth Rank, she endured the Fox Emperor’s direct pressure without fear or retreat.

Even the Fox Emperor himself was surprised.

This development was something no one had foreseen.

“Haha… excellent. Excellent! Silver Dragon Princess, you truly make me look at you in a new light. No wonder the Silver Dragon Queen trusts you enough to send you alone to the Vampire Queen’s coronation!”

The Fox Emperor withdrew his aura.

His tone shifted—from treating Xia Yi as a spoiled, unruly princess to recognizing her as an outstanding heir to a Highborn throne.

Xia Yi’s excellence exceeded everyone’s expectations.

The attitude of the entire hall changed.

They had been waiting to laugh at the Dragons—yet now, every Highborn looked at Xia Yi as a genuine threat.

This shift in their gaze was itself an acknowledgment. They no longer saw her merely as the Silver Dragon Queen’s accessory.

Many had begun contemplating, if the Silver Dragon Princess continued developing like this, then once she succeeded Xia Lulu and became the new ruler of the Dragon Clan, would the Dragons’ power grow even further? Would they cease their seclusion in the Dragon Kingdom… and bare their fangs at the many races of this land?

“The future may be interesting indeed. I look forward to it,” the Fox Emperor said, then turned and left.

“My destined rival, you truly have not disappointed me. To endure Father’s pressure without yielding… only such a version of you has value for me to defeat!”

The little fox laughed, covering one eye and deliberately putting on a deep, dramatic tone.

“In the future, I shall become as the eternal night—devouring every last ray of your light! Await the coming of our destined day!”

After leaving behind that cryptic proclamation, Yue Liu followed after her father.

“What… was she trying to say?” Xia Yi tilted her head, completely lost.

……

……

Vampire Prince Flora lowered herself into a half-kneel, bowing respectfully to the silver-haired, red-eyed vampire girl before her.

As a prince herself, Flora could not help but marvel inwardly.

The caged bird she once kept under control had now become the ruler of the Vampire Clan— the very person she must now swear loyalty to.

Truly, fate was unpredictable.

Yet despite this, Flora felt no dissatisfaction at all.

“Divine Ancestor, the coronation ceremony is fully prepared. All invited Highborn representatives from across the land have arrived,” Flora reported.

“…Oh?”

The vampire girl known as the “Divine Ancestor” reclined upon the Vampire Clan’s throne, gazing down at the bowing prince, a faint smile on her lips.

“In that case… she has arrived as well, hasn’t she?”